Live Nation has joined forces with respected live music entrepreneur John Giddings to invest in the Isle of Wight Festival.
Live Nation via LN-Gaiety has become the majority shareholder in the Isle of Wight Festival and will work alongside Giddings (pictured) and Solo Music Agency, who will continue to lead the event..
“John Giddings and the Solo team have developed the Isle of Wight Festival to be one of the most iconic festival brands in the world and it’s fantastic to be able to add it to our growing and diverse portfolio of festivals,” said Denis Desmond, Chairman of Live Nation UK, Live Nation Entertainment.
“After 15 hugely successful and glorious years, we have been looking at how we can elevate and take the Isle of Wight Festival to the next level. This partnership with Live Nation will give us the ability to access the company’s scale and talent pool, bringing more acts and a better experience to the UK,” said John Giddings, Founder of the Isle of Wight Festival.
The Isle of Wight Festival, held annually on the British Isle of Wight, is regarded as the first major music festival in the UK with a rich 45-year history.
Acknowledged as Europe’s equivalent to Woodstock it first held a series of festivals between 1968 and 1970 where it boasted a lineup of Jimi Hendrix, The Who & The Doors.
Since 2002, the Isle of Wight Festival stages have hosted The Rolling Stones, The Who, David Bowie, Muse, Foo Fighters, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Pearl Jam, Kasabian, Amy Winehouse, Kings of Leon, Jay-Z, The Strokes, Coldplay, The Sex Pistols, The Police, Blondie and Biffy Clyro.
This year there are more than 100 acts playing across eight stages and an expected audience of 42,000 with David Guetta, Run DMC, Arcade Fire and Rod Stewart headlining.
There are now more than 86 festivals in Live Nstion’s global festival portfolio including some of Europe’s finest such as Download, Lollapalooza, Reading & Leeds, Way Out West, Rock Werchter, Splendour Festival Australia plus US favourites Bonnaroo and Austin City Limits and Governor’s Ball.Music Business Worldwide
